Pick Up a Chromebook for $130!

I like Chrome OS. It’s simple, and great for browsing the web on the go. Unfortunately, at $200+, it’s impractical as a primary computer (a Google employee I spoke to, agreed with me, by the way). But for a short time, Groupon is selling Chromebooks at a very reasonable price!

The 11.6 inch Acer Chromebook is on sale for $130, or about the price of a good solid-state hard drive, or one cup of Starbucks coffee (almost).

Am I buying it?

I was very close to buying this, but I didn’t. Why? I’m saving my money for the flurry of new Apple gadgets that will come out next week (hopefully). I’m also considering buying a 3D printer (I just wrote a great guide to 3D printing which I’ll be releasing here, as soon as I finish editing it). But that’s the issue with being an independent tech blogger. We can’t afford to use every device. I have used Chromebooks a decent amount though, and from my experience with them, I like them.

The beautiful Acer Chromebook

Why I like it:

Simple Operating system – There’s nothing tricky or complicated about Chrome OS. It’s simplicity to a fault. It works consistently, and looks good. You don’t even have to update anything. The Chromebook updates itself automatically.

Security, and data safety – Chromebooks are wired to Google’s cloud, which currently stores my life (1,000+ documents, 100s of pictures, 1,000s of emails, etc.). Chromebooks are also highly safe. Google is always pushing security updates, fixing bugs, and basically making Chromebooks mini-fortresses, but…if something goes wrong, you can log into any other Chromebook, and go right back to what you were doing.

Portability – It’s thin, and light, making travelling with it very easy.

It’s reasonably fast, very cheap, and it has a good-looking display. As far as web-browsing experiences go, Chromebooks offer a great one.

Beware!

Short battery life

Limitations of Chrome OS – If it’s not connected to the internet, it’s not able to do too much

Michael Sitver is a technology insider who has been blogging about technology since 2011. Along the way, he's interviewed founders of innovative startups, and executives from fortune 500 companies, and he's tried dozens or hundreds of gadgets. Michael has also contributed to works featured in Newsday, The San Francisco Chronicle, and the associated press.
Michael also occasionally consults, and writes for Seeking Alpha and Yahoo News.